A loooong trip, well worth it!

Left my house at 6AM to pick up 3 other young women and head south for a 2-day follow-up trip. I have so much on my plate these days that I really was dreading this long trip but I knew that God probably had something amazing in store for us and sure enough, he did. The first day I drove 700 km. stopping only one time to go to the bathroom and get a drink. My poor back was screaming for mercy by the end of the day! We arrived in a southern city where our first contact was. A woman and her family who had fled the atrocities of the neighboring country to find refuge here. They had lost all of their possessions back home, everything looted and destroyed. But her husband, having worked in Dubai for many years, was able to get out his life savings before the banks collapsed. Before leaving her home, a friend said to her “when you get there, try to find a certain Christian channel on TV and I’m sure your life will be changed”. She found it and watched it with her 2 girls (8 & 13). There was a number to call if you wanted to know more about Jesus. She called the number and our visit was the result of that call. She told her husband that she had called and he said “no one ever answers those calls. The Mus. Sheikhs don’t answer you; you think the Christians will??” The woman and her husband came and met us at a certain point and lead us back to their place. Both sat riveted as we explained the gospel from beginning to end. When one of the women asked her what she knew about Christianity she said “I know nothing. That’s why I called you. I want to know everything and I want to follow in that way.” The great thing is that her husband sat there the whole time listening to everything also. At one point the couple went upstairs to get something and later the woman told us that she had told her husband that she was ready to follow this way and wanted to pray for salvation. He said “please wait and let’s read the Bible together and learn more and then we’ll both make this decision.” After we explained what they had to do to believe in Jesus, the woman asked “ok, we pray and ask him into our lives and then what comes next?” She was absolutely starved and her heart totally prepared for this encounter. It was amazing and so exciting to watch. She later told us that there are many in her country who would love to make a decision like this. They hate their religion and know that Jesus is the true way. She wanted to make the decision right then but said out of respect for her husband she would wait. We told her she did not need us there to make the decision but should call on the phone and tell us when she does. She later texted one of the girls and said “be waiting for my call tonight or tomorrow”. She said, “after I believe and I get baptized, then how can I grow and learn everything there is to know? They are actually thinking seriously of moving up to the capital and that would afford a great opportunity for them to be discipled well in the early days of their faith. At one point the man went out and brought in food and we sat and ate lunch with them and continued our conversation. The 2 girls joined the conversation at one point and were very engaged and interested. The mother said they have been watching the Christian TV channel and begging her for the family to change their religion. I am sure that the entire family will come to faith in the coming days and that they will be a catalyst to bring many more of their fellow countrymen to faith in Christ. We left them with 2 Bibles, a commentary & several DVD’s. They couldn’t wait to start watching them and I am quite sure they will be devouring the Bible in these coming days. I’ve never seen anyone so hungry and so ready. Who knows the prayers that were lifted up on behalf of these people; maybe we will know one day when we get to heaven!